While weaving in and out of staged traffic in midtown Manhattan's Times Square -- the area had been closed to regular traffic for the shoot -- at a little after 1 a.m. on Monday, a Ferrari being driven by a stuntman skidded on the slick roadway, mounted the sidewalk, knocked over a lamppost and crashed into the front of a Sbarro's Italian restaurant, injuring two pedestrians.

While weaving in and out of staged traffic in midtown Manhattan's Times Square -- the area had been closed to regular traffic for the shoot -- at a little after 1 a.m. on Monday, a Ferrari being driven by a stuntman skidded on the slick roadway, mounted the sidewalk, knocked over a lamppost and crashed into the front of a Sbarro's Italian restaurant, injuring two pedestrians.

Police said that one, a 23-year-old male, was struck by the falling streetlight and complained of a head injury, while a 21-year-old woman who was hit by the out-of-control car suffered a foot injury.

This summer won't disappoint. Not only will we get some high-profile sequels like 'Transformers' and 'Angels & Demons,' but we'll see innovative reboots of the 'X-Men,''Terminator' and 'Star Trek' franchises ... plus the G.I. Joe squad, a new Tarantino movie and Johnny Depp -- NOT playing Captain Jack. Check out 11 movies that will have your pulse racing.

What It's About: After an 'X-Men' trilogy that was two-parts glorious, the Marvel series goes into rewind with a series of origin prequels, beginning with the formative days of fan favorite Logan/Wolverine (Jackman). The actioner focuses on the clawed hero's clash with Victor Creed/Sabretooth (Schreiber) -- and will no doubt play out better on the big screen than some unfinished bootleg on your computer monitor (ahem).

What It's About:J.J. Abrams' 'Star Trek' relaunch goes where no movie has gone before: back to the origins of the U.S.S. Enterprise crew. The film follows James T. Kirk (Pine), Spock (Quinto) and co. as they rise through the Starfleet Academy, embark on the Enterprise's maiden voyage and, of course, save the world from Romulans for the very first time. Judging by positive early buzz, this franchise will most certainly live long and prosper.

What It's About: The follow-up to the controversial 'Da Vinci Code' is based on another mystery-thriller by novelist Dan Brown. This time, religious expert Robert Langdon finds himself in Rome on an action-packed quest to save the Vatican -- and Catholicism -- from being destroyed by a vengeful secret society. Codes are cracked, conspiracy theories are debunked and murder ensues.

What It's About: The eagerly anticipated fourth installment in the 'Terminator' franchise leaps ahead to the year 2018, in which John Connor (Bale) has turned from a wussy kid (no offense, Edward Furlong/Nick Stahl) into a badass, battle-scarred foot soldier in the war against Skynet. Though director McG lost the battle to score an R rating, the flick looks to be loaded with action, cyborgs and jaw-dropping twists -- but not, alas, with the much-hyped shots of a topless Moon Bloodgood.

What It's About: The 1974 thriller about a heist man who hijacks an NYC subway gets a 21st-century re-rub with Washington and Travolta mixing it up as MTA hero and criminal, respectively (the actors also sport remarkably similar facial hair -- impending plot point?). Gandolfini joins the fun in his first major post-'Sopranos' role, this time on the right side of the law as the mayor of New York.

What It's About: It's right there in the title -- the 'Fallen,' that'd be Megatron, comes back for 'Revenge.' Duh. But in case you need a little refresher: Megatron is revived and the Decepticons return to take over the earth ... and get all evil on Sam Witwicky (LaBeouf). Sam and his sexy-hot mechanically inclined gal pal Mikaela (Fox) are still teamed up with the Autobots. Sneak peeks hint at even bigger robot battles and even more massive destruction.

What It's About: Acting heavyweights Johnny Depp and Christian Bale find themselves on opposite sides of the law in Michael Mann's gritty tale of charismatic Depression-era bank robber John Dillinger (Depp) and the dashing FBI agent (Bale) charged with catching him. With gunfights, jailbreaks and betrayals galore -- plus one "Lady in Red" and socioeconomic relevance to boot -- this period shoot-'em-up promises to be both entertaining and timely.

What It's About: Gosling plays a New York real-estate heir (think a young Donald Trump, with better hair) who gets involved with a woman from the proverbial wrong side of the tracks (Dunst). When she mysteriously disappears, a down-on-his luck detective (Morgan) stumbles upon the truth ... and a lot more than he bargained for. Based loosely on a real story, the movie marks the feature directorial debut of Andrew Jarecki ('Capturing the Friedmans').

What It's About: Kids of the '80s, welcome back these "real American heroes" from the cartoon/toy franchise/comic book series; this movie explores the back story of the evil Cobra organization, with Joseph Gordon-Levitt as Cobra Commander. Ever wondered what Duke (Tatum), Hawk (Quaid), Ripcord (Wayans), Scarlett (Rachel Nichols) and the Baroness (Sienna Miller) might look like in the flesh? Well, now you'll know -- and knowing, as they say, is half the battle.

Victims were treated by paramedics on-site and then taken to a hospital for evaluation, where they were later released. Both injuries were said to be minor, and the stuntman behind the wheel was unhurt in the accident.

According to a rep for the film, "All safety regulations were followed and second unit filming will continue as planned." That may be, but this is the latest in a long string of stunt mishaps that have plagued action films of late.

Most recently, a stuntman stand-in for Daniel Radcliffe was paralyzed on the set of 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows' when he crashed to the ground after a botched explosion; a driver was left in intensive care after a wrecking his car during a chase scene for the James Bond flick 'Quantum of Solace' in Italy; numerous extras were injured when they fell out of a military vehicle whilst lensing Tom Cruise's WWII movie 'Valkyrie'; a stuntman was killed on the set of 'The Dark Knight' when the Batmobile struck a tree during rehearsals for a scene in which the vehicle is blown to bits.

So the question is: Are bigger audience expectations leading studios to undertake unsafe stunts, just to keep their heads above the ever-rising bar set by CGI-fueled spectacle? Sound off below. -- By Tom DiChiara